


Not Today (Don't You Test Me)

by MyStriderSensesAreTingling



Series: Twenty One Homestucks [1]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Based on a Twenty One Pilots Song, Dave is a cool cucumber, Fluff, How Do I Tag, John is a spicy ball of fire, M/M, No Smut, first fic, johndave - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-27
Updated: 2017-03-29
Packaged: 2018-10-11 09:56:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10462182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyStriderSensesAreTingling/pseuds/MyStriderSensesAreTingling
Summary: "Don't you test me though,just because I play the piano,Doesn't mean,I am not willing to take you down!""I'm sorry."John is a piano God who is at the end of his rope with Dave Strider. Dave Strider is a horribly confused boy who's at the end of his rope with John and his lovely blue eyes. However, both soon learn that there's more to the other than what's most obvious.----This is my first fic (and my third time trying to post it asdfghjkl), so tips are welcome! Please enjoy!





	1. In Which We Take a Look At Dave's Life

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know why, I just feel I'm better off,  
> Staying in the same room I was born in,  
> I look outside, and see a whole world better off,  
> Without me in it trying to transform it,

Dave Strider usually kept to himself. Nobody knew why, and to be honest with you, neither did he. Maybe it was just easier than having to go out and deal with people. Maybe it was because he was paranoid about his eyes. Or, more particularly, the event in which his shades fall off and he can't put them back on quick enough. That would be quite catastrophic. There was also the fact that he didn't bear the straightest of sexualities. Being bisexual wasn't exactly a problem, and it hopefully never will be, because there's nothing wrong about not being straight. However, people seemed to see it as a huge federal fucking issue, so Dave didn't even try.

The sixteen-year-old boy looked out the window. It was a calm dawn in Seattle, Washington. Though the buildings and streets around his house were a darker tint than normal due to his shades, the stars still shone as brightly as ever. He kind of wished that the world was different, just as he wished he was different. A walking toothpick of a boy with bright red eyes who was also bi? Wow, God must have had too much fun with the SIM creator of the world. Even so, the world seemed better off just as it was, and really, Dave was no exception.

Dave pulled himself from the window to head downstairs to eat breakfast. His new house was a welcome change from his old apartment, but it did provide more places for Dirk to hide smuppets. You see, two years back, Dirk decided that the two of them living alone in an apartment in Texas wasn't exactly the best environment for Dave. They rarely ever saw their cousins, the Lalondes, so they ended up moving in with them in Seattle, Washington. Dirk, thankfully, had laid off the traps because of this. Dave was certain he favored Rose, but said nothing about it. Rose was sipping some coffee while on her phone, probably texting Kanaya. Dave poured himself some AJ and some cereal in a bowl, carefully and swiftly opening every cabinet and drawer. Three out of five appliances were trapped, and the kitchen was littered with plushrumps by the time Dave finished his cereal. Rose was unperturbed, and if she'd changed at all she was slightly amused by his efforts.

He looked down at the puppets with contempt and headed back upstairs to change into some clothes he could actually wear to school in the middle of a Seattle Autumn. He ended up choosing his usual red sweatshirt, his shirt from last year with his record symbol which he wears ironically, black jeans and red sneakers. To school he went, sticking his earbuds in on the bus.

People made room for him, as they usually did, because Dave Strider had a reputation of being the resident bully. It all started with a kid named Karkat, who Dave had been teasing about his relationship issues because Dave himself was feeling pretty iffy due to a fight with Dirk. Dave had felt pretty powerful at that moment, and he didn't want to ever stop feeling like that. Something inside him told him it wasn't right, but he chose to ignore it. A few more victims came along, and he'd lost a girlfriend (Terezi Pyrope) and gained a palemate (also Terezi Pyrope). She'd eventually helped him get his morals straight, but then Dave found out about a certain John Egbert.

Seeing John for the first time had been like being knocked over by the wind. The kid was so short and nerdy, he had the most glorious buckteeth, and he didn't even try, but something about John made Dave stare at him every day since to try and figure out what it was. He had great posture, definitely, his voice hadn't changed fully yet, and he had eyes like the sky reflected on the ocean and back into the sky. Yep. It wasn't even possible, how blue they were. What Dave really liked about him, however, was how he wasn't quite so invisible when talking to people. He was animated, passionate, and his face showed every emotion possible. Dave didn't know that a person could feel so much as Egbert did. Dave had learned to shut out emotions like fear and sadness and anger and just deal with everything. But John? John, when not unrealistically cheery, could switch emotions faster than Karkat could think up inventive swear words.

Even faster yet were his hands on the keys of a piano. John's piano skill was like a reincarnation of Mozart's. He played the piano just as emotionally as he spoke. If you blocked out his face, you could tell what was going on with it by the keys, and vice versa. If it weren't for the sound of the keys, you wouldn't think he'd have been pressing them at all, his fingers were so quick. Dave didn't know shit about piano, but he did know that whatever John was playing, he was playing it right.

So that's what Dave decided to bully him about.

He knew that bullying him wasn't exactly the best course of action, but realistically, Dave would never have a chance at even being friends with this guy. The world had already denied him a much better life, so he stopped it from denying him something else. Plus, John was really cute when he was flustered because his cheeks got red and his tiny hands balled up and he always looked Dave right in the eyes. Or shades.

Dave shuffled into the school building with his usual pokerface plastered on. One corner of his lips lifted when he spotted Karkat by his locker. Wherever Karkat was, John couldn't be far behind.

"So, Vantas," Dave strutted up to him and leaned on the locker next to his. He towered over Karkat by a whole head. "What's the new otp? Is Sollux free again or are you falling back to Nepeta?"

"Shut the fuck up, Strider," Karkat snapped. "I don't need your bullshit right now. Who put you on this planet anyways, and what were they high on? Retard juice?" Dave was about to retort when his favorite voice called out to him from a yard or two away.

"Dave! What the fuck do you want now?" John spat at you. He had to look up to face you properly, so all it did was make him look cuter.

"Oh, nothing much." Dave shrugged. "Read any good books lately, or have you been too busy with your sheet music?"

"Don't know why you'd care, everyone knows you can't read a book if your life depended on it," John said coolly.

Oh yeah, did I mention?

John was a fucking beast when it came to witty replies.

Dave would have laughed, but it was actually slightly true. Reading was never his thing. He could read a book, but he'd never really had the motivation to.

"Loss for words? Or is your knowledge of the English language failing you again?" Karkat piped in.

Dave suddenly remembered that it didn't end that well when both of them were around.

"No, it's just that I'm trying to find a romcom line that matches your life, but I can't seem to find one that's just as awful," Dave replied pretending to be thinking really hard.

"Fuck off, Strider." Karkat lashed out.

"You fuck on," Dave smirked. "I'll bet John pounds you like he pounds his keys."

"You know what?" John intervened, seeing Karkat's bright red face that matched his own. "How about we play the game of, 'let's ignore the fuckwad for the rest of the week,' okay?"

"Play a few notes for me, kay Egbert?" Dave laughed in triumph. "Here, I'll give you one. C sharp. Something you're not able to do with your dumbass shades on." With that last remark, John whipped around and took Karkat with him.

Dave sighed. "He's way too good for me." He muttered to himself.

Dave made his way to his own locker to head towards his own class. He gave that interaction a B+.

He walked in about a minute or two late, but Ms. Lalonde didn't notice. She was absorbed in her lesson on better vocabulary. A few people were already asleep, so Dave just took his usual spot in the back next to Eridan. Ms. Lalonde went on about which words to replace with other words and when it was an appropriate time to switch them. Dave let his thoughts wander to John about mid-lesson, knowing he could probably rely on Rose for the notes.

How would it feel? He wondered. To be in love with someone. Not just loving someone, but to be with them. With Terezi, it had been like that for a few weeks, and then his relationship sort of turned into more of a "we're best friends, but we can let people think we're dating for a while longer" kind of thing. This John thing had been going on for months on end now, he wondered if it would ever stop. Then again, he didn't really want it to. Would it have been different? Even if the world had to deny him John, would it have been different if he tried to make friends? If he tried to be a better person? What if he-

The bell rung, signaling the end of class. Maybe he should consult Terezi on this later. They were better off as moirails anyway.


	2. In Which We Take a Look Into John's Life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You are out of my mind, ooh  
> You aren't seeing my side, ooh  
> You waste all this time trying to get to me  
> But you are out of my mind

John Egbert leaned his head on his desk, which was seated next to Karkat's. This morning had been pretty normal for him. He woke up, refused to get out of bed for the entirety of two minutes, and ate the pancakes his dad had made from scratch. Then he went to school on the bus, waited for two stops for Karkat to climb aboard, and then talked with him until they reached Skaia High. Well, more like John did the talking while Karkat mostly listened and cursed. Either way, once they reached school, they had their usual arguments with a particular Dave Strider and then went to their first period. Their second period had happened without event, but it was at their third period today that all three of them shared a class. History. John wasn't particularly fond of history, so there was never really anything to focus on when Dave passed him notes. 

Usually, John would just ignore them and throw them in the trash. On rare occasions, he'd pass them to Karkat, who'd then throw them in the trash for him, but not before shooting a nasty look at Strider.

The first one that day landed neatly on his desk. 

Ignore.

The second one hit him square in the back of the head.

Eye roll. Ignore.

The third one knocked the first one off of the desk. 

Sigh. Ignore. 

John, in a fit of boredom and frustration, opened the third note, since that was the only one still on his desk. 

dude why do i keep sending these to you i know you never read them 

John rolled his eyes and scribbled with his blue pen

1\. your aim is as bad as your comeback lines

2\. you are wasting your time. i don't care. you were never significant enough to get a place in my head and you never will be. 

He threw it back at the Strider, who raised an eyebrow at him before slowly uncrumpling it. His face didn't change at all. John wasn't sure why, but it annoyed him to no end! How could a guy  _not_ feel so much? How could somebody bottle up his emotions like that? Usually, with Karkat by his side, John could hide the worst of his emotions. But without Karkat? Not a chance. John got flustered easily without support from others, so he usually surrounded himself with friends.

Dave, on the other hand? Dave didn't need anyone. He was so good at keeping himself level that the anger he  _should_ be getting was instead feeding off into the people around him. John guessed that that's why Dave infuriated him so much. He was so  _together._ John wasn't even sure of his own sexuality, much less his grip on his emotions. Even when he was spitting insults, his game face was on. Strider, on the other hand? Blatant pokerface which was usually accompanied by a smirk.  

John spotted a new note on his desk. With a frown, he uncrumpled it. 

so after months of ignoring me you finally choose to respond

wow john i feel so loved

what's the special occasion?

John rolled his eyes as he wrote again with his blue pen.

there is no occasion, doofus.

is it unnormal for a guy to get irritated?

He tossed it back to the blonde, who was smirking right at him. John felt his face involuntarily heat up. Soon enough, a new note was thrown onto his desk. 

irritated? that word's too big for me. can you elaborate?

John scowled to himself as he wrote his reply. 

1\. no wonder it's too big. the word's probably longer than your dick

2\. i only replied because i was hoping we could ignore each other afterward. obviously, that isn't happening. 

He tossed it over his shoulder, knowing that it'd hit home. It did, as Dave practically lunged for it in his chair. Putting the note flat on his desk, John watched as Dave wrote his response. Mr. Sumner droned on, oblivious to the note passing. Karkat had given up on watching it and was doodling in his notebook. Terezi, who was sitting next to Dave, gave a curious sniff at the paper. She frowned once she smelled John's pen. Or, at least, he thought she did. If there was anyone John hated more than Dave, it was Terezi.

The reason John hated Dave so much was because of how assuming he was. Just because John loved biology and chemistry and playing the piano didn't mean that he was a  _total_ weirdo. He was sure that Dave had his own really weird interests that he was a lot less open about. John found him a hypocrite and continued to ignore him. John also hated how amused Dave was by his anger. John seemed to have inherited a bit of Karkat's rage gland from hanging around him so much. An angry John was probably adorable to someone tall like Dave, but to John, it seemed extremely rude and uncalled for. He hated the way that Dave would always just look at him and smirk whenever he was trying to get a reaction out of him. At this point in time, John couldn't stand him. 

When another piece of paper landed on his desk, John felt compelled to open it. He regretted it immediately. 

i'm going to disagree with that statement

but if you want proof, you know where to find me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These first two chapters were super short, I promise they'll be longer next time! Also, this is my first fic on here, so please cut me some slack. I'm still getting used to all of the crazy (but cool) features, so please, any sort of tips and tricks would be helpful! Thanks, enjoy!


End file.
